"Turtles and Tails" Final Consonant Deletion Game! {UPDATED}

Today I am bringing you one of my absolute favorite preschool activities for targeting phonological processing goals; specifically, final consonant deletion. Say hi to...

This is a matching game I use to target phonological awareness and self-monitoring in kids working on final /t/. It incorporates a visualization of final sounds "tacking on" to the ends of each word that my kids really seem to get and I find that this game is great way to get "drill practice" in in a not so drill-like fashion. 

Basically, there are five turtles and tails, each with matching final /t/ stimulus pictures on the back:

Here's how we play:

1) We flip all turtles and tails over with photos facing down.

2) The child and I alternate turns looking for "matches" between turtles and their tails. Every time we turn a turtle or tail over we attempt to say the word pictured, regardless of a match or not.

3) When we find a match, we get SUPER excited and put the turtle's tail on!

I like to then flip the tail back over to the "t" and visually bring the turtle and tail together while pausing to add on the final /t/ verbally. I will produce each word 5X each and then let the child. As the child gets more proficient in adding the final sound, we might say the words faster. I try to make sure the child produces the final /t/ sound simultaneously with the actually "attaching" of the tail to each turtle, to mentally and motorically solidify the process that is happening. 

4) After all turtles have "found" their tails we might go through each turtle-tail match one more time for extra practice. 

Another fun way to use this game is to hide the tails in different places around the room at make matches that way, while simultaneously targeting prepositions or following non-routine directions.

Anywho, I wanted to share this game with you all because I have been using it lately with great results.

The updated version of this game (effective February 2016) now includes turtles with solid coloring- no "coloring-in" necessary! Here's an example of what you can expect:

You can find this Turtles & Tails game over in my SpeechLoveTexas Teachers Pay Teachers shop HERE or on Etsy HERE. 

Thanks for stopping by!:)